The Secrets Within
by Mudkipbestgirl
Summary: When the son of a Gym Leader loses his peaceful home life in a vicious siege, the young man's quest for answers will unveil the dark secrets that drive the Pokémon world.


In the misty darkness of a fateful night in Exum Village, a deafening explosion shattered the silence of the serene hamlet and forever altered my life. The force of the blast sprawled me out of a deep sleep and onto the floor of my room at our family's Pokémon Gym. Confused and disoriented, I groggily sat up and scanned the room for any clues to the only question that mattered, "What's happening?"

I found the answer in the billows of dusty smoke squeezing under the door, and anxious thoughts of Dad and my young sister Cecilia immediately flooded my head. Not thinking properly above the dire concerns swirling in my mind, I grasped the doorknob, then immediately recoiled my hand in pain. Patches of small burns already formed on my hand as my absolute worst fears were confirmed. The Gym was ablaze.

Rushing to open the window and climb to safety, something stirred deep inside of me, halting me in my tracks. Maybe it was the concern for my family, or the fearlessness of a 13-year boy, or perhaps the inherited vigor of a legendary Gym Leader that motivated me to turn back into what I knew was a roaring fire. Regardless, I readied my shoulder toward the door and with a running start slammed my body through the door, blasting it right off its hinges.

Smoke immediately swarmed into my lungs and my eyes stung fiercely from the fiery dust hanging in air. Frantically coughing to clear my airways, I pulled my shirt up over my mouth and nose and blinked wildly, trying to catch even the smallest glimpse in the dark, smoke-filled hallway. Using the wall for support, I inched toward the arena and the other bedrooms when suddenly, another explosion roared just behind me, hurling me to the floor and shooting large chunks of debris my way.

With impact welts already beginning to pulsate, I rolled to my back and propped myself up with my elbow and made a shocking discovery. Among the thick black smoke, the outline of the rising full moon shone through. The entire back wall of the Gym had been blown apart! And out of that creeping darkness approached two foreboding shadows.

One of the shadows, undoubtedly human, stepped through the gaping threshold, and noticing my presence, halted and moved a hand to its head. Clad in all black, or at least as I perceived it, the figure took on a greater eeriness as its movements seemed to blend into the smoky darkness. Every fiber of my body urged me to get out of there, yet I simply could not do it. All of the courage that coursed through me only moments ago had evaporated. My body was frozen.

Peering as intently as my watery eyes could muster, I saw the human figure wave its left arm, beckoning the other shadow. Standing at about half the human's height, I immediately realized that it must be a Pokémon. My mind raced with all of the possibilities, some horrifying and others not so, all the while screaming to my fear-stricken body, "Run!"

Then, two terrifying words rang out from a robotic sounding voice and sent a shivery convulsion through every inch of my body. "Night Slash!" My eyes flew wide in horror as the shadow bolted at me through the darkness. Streaks of moonlight shining through the rubble illuminated a shimmering gold spot, red protrusions, and worst of all, two razor sharp sets of claws from a dark, lean body. Unmistakably, the body of a ferocious Weavile.

A black aura enveloped the Weavile's shimmering claws as the creature closed the last of the distance keeping me alive. Even with no time to flee or scream, my mind recognized the grim fate that awaited me in the encroaching flames should Weavile's attack connect. Yet as the Pokémon cocked its sleek arm, all I could do was futilely shut my eyes and wish it all away. In these moments before inevitable demise, I yearned for the days of Cecilia and I battling and playing for hours on end with our favorite monsters in Dad's vast collection of Bug types or watching his enthralling battles with challengers. My visions, so lucid, seemed to suck me back into the moments themselves, until a sharp stabbing pain assaulted my brain, and my reality faded to black with the faint sounds of the fire crackles and heavy foot steps to see me off from this life.

…

My eyes gradually wrenched themselves open, straining mightily against the swelling and watery irritation. My head pounded so intensely that every inch of my body felt the coursing pain, and the brilliant light of the rising sun only amplified it. I winced as I struggled to a sitting position, stunned that somehow I was still alive. As my senses slowly returned to my command, I noticed a thin layer of silvery fibers loosely enveloping my body. Drawing several strands of the surprisingly sturdy strands up to my face, I instantly recognized the silk that had so often adorned the Gym. Pushing the notion of a human cocoon temporarily out of my head, I gingerly brushed myself clean and scanned my surroundings. And what I saw thoroughly stunned me.

From my present perch on a small hill above the Gym, I saw nothing but smoldering ruins below. My mouth fell agape and tears began to well in my eyes as the utter destruction sank in. The physical pain as a mere afterthought, I bolted down the hill, teetering on the brink of losing both balance and emotional sanity.

"Dad!" I shouted in the loudest voice my body could produce. "Cecelia!" I continued bellowing as I reached the remnants of the outer wall and stepped through the wasted threshold of my formerly peaceful life. But as much as I hollered, neither of them ever materialized. All that surrounded me was the charred remainder of plaster walls, furniture, and personal effects. Pokémon references and memorabilia lay scattered throughout, but no pokéballs remained anywhere.

I ran to site of Cecilia's room and started furiously digging through the rubble until blood began to seep from my fingertips. "This isn't real," I thought as tears again began to obscure my vision, "Dad will call us for breakfast any moment and Cecilia will come and jump on my back to wake me up. This is all just a horrific dream." But as my hands grasped a small plushy object, I could deny the harsh reality no longer. In my hands was my sister's beloved Joltik doll, its body scarred with reddish-brown burn marks and its face melted into an otherworldly stare of torment. I clutched the doll to my chest as I collapsed to my knees and sobbed uncontrollably. Everything I had once known had been snatched away from me.

I cried for what felt like an eternity, until the choking feelings nearly knocked me prone and my body could produce no more tears. It was as I finally began to compose myself that I heard a rustling in the rubble near the scorched battle arena. I walked over, stumbling over the burnt remains of the majestic trees that once formed the battleground, until to my surprise I saw a Larvesta wriggling into the piles.

I called out to the creature and as it turned to face me, I noticed the collection of black spots upon its white mane that instantly identified the Larvesta as Dad's.


End file.
